48 REPORT ON INTRODUCTION OF 



August 5, at 1.40 a. m., got under way. At 3.15 a. m. steamed through 

 masses of floating ice resting on Cape Belcher and Sea Horse Islands. 

 At 1.05 a. m. made fast to a large field of grounded ice off the United 

 States Eefuge Station, Cape Smythe (Point Barrow). 



August G, after breakfast I went ashore with Captain Healy in the 

 steam launch. 



Mr. Stevenson, the missionary, was busy framing the foundation tim- 

 bers of the Presbyterian mission building. 



During the spring the Cape Smythe Whaling Company (Brower, 

 Gordon, Liebes & Co.) took three large, one medium-sized, and some 

 small whales, making 7,700 pounds of marketable bone. 



Mr. Kelly, of the Pacific Steam Whaling Company, secured 11,000 

 pounds of bone. 



Last June one of these stations had three whaling boats driven out 

 to sea in a gale. Two of the boats succeeded in returning to the shore, 

 but the third was crushed in the ice and the crew of two men, a woman, 

 and a boy had to take refuge on a piece of ice, which was driven out 

 to sea. After a while the ice upon which they had floated was broken 

 up and they escaped to other pieces. Finally, after being out upon the 

 ice sixty-one days, they were driven ashore 100 miles south of where 

 they started from, and escaped to land. A portion of the time they 

 were on the ice they had no water to drink, and for eight days they 

 were without food. 



At Point Hope one of the young men out seal hunting was driven to 

 sea on a cake of ice. Fortunately, after some days, the wind changed 

 and floated him back again to land. While floating around the sea he 

 shot and lived on three white polar bears. 



The provisions and supplies for the refuge station were landed and 

 the captain took on board about 19,000 pounds of whalebone for the two 

 companies, which he will take to Unalaska, from whence it can be 

 shipped to San Francisco. In the evening the ice floe to which we were 

 fastened showing signs of breaking up, the captain cast off and 

 anchored. 



At the close of the whaling season the natives have a great celebra- 

 tion. Mr. Kelly decorates the station with bunting and gives a feast. 

 At this festival one of the games (called Neklakatak) is tossing a woman 

 into the air from a blanket. To be thus tossed is considered a great 

 honor and is given to the women who have distinguished themselves 

 by efficiency in whaling. 



Mr. Kelly frequently receives letters from his hunting parties written 

 in symbols. The two printed in this report when put into English read 

 as follows : 



Letter ]STo. 1 means that one man (G) wants four steel fox traps (1), 

 one drinking cup (2), one paper of needles (3), one knife (4), and a pack- 

 age of leaf tobacco (5). 



No. 2 reads, a man (13) and his wife (14) want one pocketknife (1), 



